Breath of life: Best ways to tackle stress by breathing correctly

LEARNING how to breathe correctly can help us tackle stress and anxiety. Our writer takes a breather...

Learning how to breathe correctly can help us tackle stress and anxiety

As we all take about 20,000 breaths every day of our lives, breathing is not something I ever thought I would need to practise. So why am I lying on the floor with a beanbag on my stomach being taught how to breathe by specialist coach Rebecca Dennis?

Because almost none of us breathes properly, insists Rebecca, who has distilled her 10 years of training and experience into a book, And Breathe. We take shallow little breaths – most of us use only 30 per cent of our respiratory system – and many of us, especially if stressed or anxious, breathe with our chests, rather than our bellies.

“When you see a little baby in the cot they breathe in their belly, their diaphragm and their chest in one connected movement. It’s the same with toddlers,” says Rebecca. “But by the time we are teenagers and young adults, the majority of us are chest breathers. What I want to do is not learn new tricks, but get the body to remember to breathe in this way.”

Rebecca, stumbled across the concept when she began working at a yoga centre in north London. She had suffered from depression for 20 years and had attempted suicide, but found breathing classes transformed her wellbeing. She trained as a breath coach and now teaches others the exercises that have helped hundreds of people beat panic attacks, digestive problems, irritable bowel syndrome, insomnia, asthma, muscle tension and depression.

The technique she uses is called Transformational Breath.

You wouldn’t walk to Sainsbury’s breathing like this, it’s used for daily exercises designed to de-stress you, use more of your diaphragm and help your body retrain itself in its “everyday” breathing.

Rebecca tells me I’m a classic chest breather (we tend to be stressed and live in our heads a lot). The idea is to get me to breathe more into the belly and hips.

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I’m lying on my back on a mat, knees up and feet flat on the floor, hands on tummy. I’m told to open my mouth really wide, then breathe in for two or three counts while pushing my tummy up, then do a quick exhalation, like a quiet sigh, for about one count. Then inhale again for two or three counts. It’s harder than it sounds, but once you get the hang of it, your breaths happen in continuous waves with no gap between one exhale and the next inhale.

The idea is to concentrate on the breath and not let your mind wander to your to-do list.

Oddly, Rebecca always seems to know when my mind is having a little wander and exhorts me to “bring it back to the breath.”

I notice I’m hot, my hands are tingling and eventually, after about 10 minutes, I can’t feel my feet or hands, which is weird. Noises seem louder, too. After the hour’s session it takes a good few minutes of my regular breathing before I can contemplate opening my eyes and standing up.

I spend the rest of the day exhausted, but feel a new calmness the following day and keep noticing I’m breathing deeper and using more of my body.

So how does it work?

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By breathing deeply we are allowing the rib cage to expand and draw more oxygen into the lungs, which helps our heart rate slow down and relaxes us. It also helps release tension in the diaphragm and primary breathing muscles, which can alleviate respiratory problems like asthma, and improves posture and releases tension in the jaw and shoulders.

Breathing more deeply activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which lowers blood pressure and allows us to feel calm – the opposite of the sympathetic nervous system, which raises the heart rate and prompts stress-hormone production so we can fight or flee a threat.

“Breathing is the bridge linking our mind and body,” says Rebecca. “Research shows that by changing the depth and pattern of breathing you can change the messages being sent from the body’s respiratory system to the brain.”

Rebecca has met her fair share of sceptics, but has helped all her clients, including a neuroscientist.

“She was referred by her osteopath who had recommended breath exercises because of the tightness she was feeling in her chest,” says Rebecca. “She was sceptical at first, as are many I meet, but after a few sessions, she no longer had a problem with chest pain.

“I have had clients who have been using inhalers for years come off them and people with depression who have been able to reduce their medication. It’s like having therapy but not having to do all that talking, which suits some people, especially men,” she says.

Rebecca recommends practising the technique for one or two minutes a day. “If you can do that you’ll notice a difference on a physical, mental and emotional level. Scientific research is showing this works. Our breath is a tool we all have – and it’s free.”

Are you a chest or a belly breather?

You can do this sitting up straight or lying down, but if you’re sitting up, keep your spine straight. Relax your shoulders; try not to hunch them.

l Close your eyes and take a deep inhale through the nose and let go of the exhale through the nose.

l Repeat this two or three times.

l Now place one hand on your belly and the other hand on your chest and breathe in through the nose and out through the nose.

Notice where you can feel the breath more: your chest or belly. Chest breathers tend to be stressed.

Now see if you can feel your breath equally with each hand, using both chest and belly.

Daily conscious breathing exercise

l Prop yourself up on the bed at a semi-reclined angle with cushions or pillows behind you so your chest is higher than your legs. Make sure you are warm and comfortable and that your head and neck are supported.

l Place your hands on your lower abdomen, a few inches below the navel. Relax the jaw and open the mouth wide and take a deep breath. Your belly should rise like a balloon.

l Then exhale with a quick, but soft and relaxed sigh. Try to concentrate on the breathing. Inhalation should be about twice as long as exhalation.

l Start the next inhalation straight away so there are no pauses between breaths – like a wave motion.

Repeat for one to two minutes and notice any physical sensations in the body. Rest for one minute when you return to your normal nose-breathing pattern.

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By breathing deeply we are allowing the rib cage to expand and draw more oxygen into the lungs

Calming breathing exercises

If you are awake at 4am and can’t get back to sleep:

l Breathe in through your nose for four seconds, hold your breath for seven seconds, then exhale through your mouth for eight seconds. This helps to slow the heart rate and activate the parasympathetic nervous system to bring you into a relaxed state.

If you are nervous:

l Try to notice where your breath is – probably in your chest. Take some deep breaths into the belly. Inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth with a little pause in between. As you breathe in expand your belly and as you exhale make the belly go in.

If you are stressed:

l Close your eyes. Place your thumb over your right nostril and exhale through the left for eight seconds. Breathe in through the left nostril and hold for another eight. Repeat on the other side and keep going up to 10 times. Notice the difference in your breath.

To buy And Breathe: The Complete Guide To Conscious Breathing – The Key To Health, Wellbeing and Happiness by Rebecca Dennis (£14.99, Orion Spring), see Express Bookshop at expressbookshop.co.uk. For more on Transformational Breath, visit breathingtree.co.uk and transformationalbreath.co.uk.